Browsing by Author "Pietersen, Leander"

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    Jolyn Phillips se geding met taal in radbraak (2017)
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2023-12) Pietersen, Leander; Visagie, Andries; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Afrikaans and Dutch.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Over the years, various literary theorists and researchers have focused on language as an identity construction in different publications. Jolyn Phillips is no exeption and made her debut as a poet in 2017 with her collection radbraak in postcolonial South Africa. The significant title, radbraak, aligns with the language mutilation strategy evident in Phillips’ (2017) verses, encompassing language phenomena such as diglossia, code-switching, symbiosis, and metaphorical language. Furthermore, various linguistic frameworks are employed to provide a meaningful interpretation of the language mutilation strategy in Phillips’ (2017) verses. The dissertation specifically focuses on language as a construct and how Phillips (2017) applies it in her poetry. As a speaker of various varieties of Afrikaans, including Overberg Afrikaans, Cape Afrikaans and Standard Afrikaans, radbraak (2017) attempts to make these language varieties converse effectively. Phillips’ (2017) radbraak highlights different language varieties within the South African context, which are seen as separate entities but inherently have the potential to function symbiotically. The cultural critic, Hein Willemse (2012) notes that Cape Afrikaans is particularly associated with the humon of colored people and that speakers are considered “naïve, subservient, semi-educated, and unable to understand or appreciate complexity”. In contrast, Standard Afrikaans is spoken mainly by the Cape working class (coloured and white) in political arenas, corporate spaces, and educational levels, while the tendency towards a unique patois within local communities occurs naturally. In radbraak (2017), a concerted effort is made to break down these hierarchical levels of Afrikaans language varieties. Phillips (2017) succeeds in including various poems in her collection that transcend different boundaries, specifically between languages, language varieties, and cultures. This study includes a detailed discussion of seven selected poems from radbraak (2017). Theoretical insights into hybridity as a concept are used to highlight the importance of the hybridisation in the poet’s work devoted to language and identity. The selected theoretical framework is applied as a concept related to identity formation, language, and culture, which could possibly be further explored in future research.